How do I review a book in which everything that can go wrong, does go wrong, sending our main characters into a series of rollercoaster’s rides that make you fear for their lives even knowing that there are still a few books left in the series so somehow they’re going to make it out alive? The answer is: you don’t. I can’t review this book without spoiling it and if I spoil it then I take away from you half the fun of reading it. I can’t do that.

“You’re ten pints of crazy in a one-pint glass.”

Locke Lamora is a book crush of mine. One of many, I know that, but one nonetheless. Locke is far from perfect; he is one flawed tiny human being. Tiny besides Jean, archangel Jean Tannen, responsible of keeping Locke alive. How can a single man find himself in so much trouble in such little time is a mystery! He comes out with the craziest plans and you don’t think they can work. Then he goes and explains the details and, maybe, they can make it work and come out of it richer. But TWISTS!!! Freaking plot twists around every single corner! I may have a few new white hairs on my head. Worth it.

“He is extraordinary,” Locke whispered. “He continues to save my life, time and time again, even when I don’t deserve it. Which is always, more or less.”

I have always thought that Jean was too good to be true and he is. He isn’t without flaws but he is such an honest human being; they lie all the time but he stays true to his feelings even when he is given a hard time. He doesn’t give up on Locke even when he doesn’t deserve a good friend like Jean. I was so happy seeing other sides of him, one in particular, and every page I turned had me anxious because there just isn’t a happily ever after for these guys, right?

“Wise in the ways of all such things is Jean Tannen,” said Jean. “Wiser by far than most; especially most named Lamora.”

I hope by the end of the series they are all happy and rich and surrounded by the people they love. Even if I have to wait until I’m 85 years old, I want to read the final book that ends with an epilogue of them eating roast chicken and laughing sipping wine in their gigantic villa! I won’t settle for anything less than that.

“I want to hug you. And I want to tear your gods-damned head off. Both at once.”

After the disasters of the first book, Locke is a living corpse and Jean is there to put him together once again. They fight, they make up; they live up to the title of brotp that suits them so well. Their new plan takes years of organization and every single detail is important for the outcome. Luck is not on their side, as usual, and their plan takes them to unusual places. Like on a pirate ship! Pirate ship with cats! Pirate ship with cats sleeping on Locke! Locke-cat-boy! Pirates!! I love stories with pirates and if the captain of the ship is a woman, then I love it even more.

“Mew,” the kitten retorted, locking gazes with him. It had the expression common to all kittens, that of a tyrant in the becoming. I was comfortable, and you dared to move, those jaded eyes said. For that you must die.”

There are lots of new characters and that didn’t sit well in my stomach. In the first book I learnt the hard way that it was unwise to get attached to side characters because, for example, they wouldn’t be around for the sequels or, worse and more probable, they could die. I can enjoy a book only to a certain point if I know that death is lurking in the shadows. I don’t like being surprised by the departure of characters I come to like. Who does? Nevertheless I loved this book and I loved the new characters, the good ones, of course.

“Maxilan, darling.” Locke raised one eyebrow and smiled. “I knew you were driven, but I had no idea you could smoulder. Come, take me now! Jean won’t mind; he’ll avert his eyes like a gentleman.”

The villains had their charm but they were bad guys putting in danger my Locke and his bff so they weren’t lovable villains. They weren’t villains you love to hate. You just hate them. Come on, I have been with my boys for half the book planning a thing and then you come around and twist everything for your benefit and send them to their almost certain deaths? And you want me to see the bigger picture? No, sir, you can go live with those weird sea creatures that glow. You can live INSIDE the glowing monsters, for all I care!

All the naval terms had me confused a little but it was so much fun being with them on the Poison Orchid. Pirate life suited Locke and Jean; they are thieves after all. Pirate life gave Locke a tan, a beard and his natural hair color back: what’s not to love about that?

“We may need to ready ourselves to repel boarders.”
“With what? One stiletto ad hurtful insinuations about their mothers?”

This book was funny and I noticed, going through the highlighted quotes, that I needed to thank Locke for almost all of the laughs and giggles. This book was also super long and I had a hard time reading it at first. I know now that reading a 400+ pages ebook is frustrating: it seems that you aren’t doing any progress and it caused me to put this marvel on hold since November! I bought the physical copies of the three books that are published and I read easily. If I knew that was the problem, I would’ve bought the books sooner. Better late than never, right?

Locke Lamora was small, but the Thorn of Camorr was larger than any of this.

So….pirates, sea creatures, crazy plans, steamy scenes, CATS, bad guys, assassins, and a not very sane dose of little heart attacks. This book was one hell of a ride, worth every single scream and tear.

Magic. I just love magic. I fell in love with the world K.J. Charles built in the Charm of Magpies series; loved the characters, magical ones and not. I think I need to read again the whole series. I’m in need of Stephen and Crane! Honestly, I could read thousands of books set in that magnificent magical Victorian England.

Rag and Bone has been in my kindle library for months, untouched, unread, with no logical reason whatsoever. If you want to read it, I recommend you read first the small prequel that is like a long prologue for the story. I think without reading A Queer Trade you’re missing a lot of the story; it tells how our two main characters meet and what the hell is going on at the beginning of this book. I really think that without reading the prequel there’s too many things that not make much sense. The prequel is a must read.

Crispin and Ned meet under weird circumstances and they find themselves involved in even weirder events. Thanks to this misadventure, they seem to be in a stable relationship now, with its ups and down of course. So, pretty normal. But Crispin isn’t a normal human being, he has magic and, after spending so many years using it in illegal ways, now he’s finding it so hard fitting in the practitioners’ world. Ned used bone and blood magic that it’s illegal and only warlocks use it. And if you’re a warlock, it means you’re evil: but our Crispin may be insecure, a little judgey, a bit self-centred, and naïve, but he certainly isn’t evil.

Ned, on the other hand, is no magician: he is a waste-man and he is good at what he does. He has a hearing talent, though: he can hear magic but can’t use it. This hearing talent is a main resource to solving this book’s mystery case but not without Ned wanting to punch every single practitioner on Earth. Ned doesn’t like magic, he doesn’t trust it. He sees how magic influences Crispin, how bad it can be and how practitioners think only magical people deserve help, forgetting how non-magic folks are somehow innocent victims of their wrongdoings.

Crispin and Ned are very good for each other but they have issues they need to get through to be able to be 100% happy. I got mad at Crispin, I really did, he was making bad choices because he didn’t see how much value he had as a person; he was always seeing how he was not enough and that was self-destructive. I cheered for him and his happiness. I wanted him to be able to use his magic legally and easily. I wanted him to be proud of himself. I wanted people to see how worthy of a second chance he was, just the way Ned saw him. Ned thought Crispin amazing, and he was afraid of always being second place to magic. Those two were going to have a tortuous road to happiness but it was going to be worth it.

Do you want to know what I loved about this book and its prequel/prologue? I loved the importance that was given to kisses. I have always thought kisses to be the best romantic gesture of all, the most intimate. You give me a couple that kisses with such love and passion, and you have in me their number 1 fan.

I pray to our Lord Crane to have more stories set in this magical world! Lord Crane, do this for me, please! Just this once!

“People create poetry and mustard gas. We invent gods and monsters and gods that might as well be monsters. We act with extraordinary grace and unfathomable cruelty. We’re so terribly intelligent, and dreadfully easy to fool.”

If there’s something I like to read more than books with happy endings, are fantasy books with happy endings. Spectred Isle has that and I loved all of it: mystery, ghosts, spirits, magic, great characters, and great chemistry between said characters. I can reconfirm that K.J. Charles can and will steal my heart with every book she writes. The story flows flawlessly with the need to know more about everything, the need to know these characters you’ve loved, possibly from page 1, are going to be happy and okay in the end.

Saul, an archaeologist dishonourably discharged from the war, is now working for the only man that doesn’t mind what he did in the past. This man is a paranormal fanatic and is looking for everything out of the ordinary in London and surroundings. Saul helps him going to the places he points out to see if he sees something strange that can’t be explained. Saul doesn’t believe in the paranormal but he needs money so he refrains himself from criticizing his boss’ hobby. I would love going to a ghost/treasure hunt but maybe I’m not that brave, or for that matter, that adventurous.

“You were a pawn in a damned complex game, and you were played and sacrificed as such. I’m glad you weren’t taken off the board altogether.”

During a weird episode of a tree catching fire without apparent reason, Saul stumbles upon Randolph, the last occultist of the Glyde family. After that peculiar event, Saul runs into Randolph everywhere he goes. Saul wonders why he is always meeting this fascinating and handsome man in the weirdest places. Randolph wonders why this seemingly normal man is always involved in strange paranormal events. Something is happening, the veil that separates the worlds is thinner every day, things are looking bad. To answer Randolph perplexities comes a vague prophecy and maybe it can explain why Saul is always where he isn’t supposed to be.

Saul realised, the painful prospect of hoping again was better than the dull knowledge he never would.

The prophecy may explain why they run into each other more often than not, but it doesn’t explain the feelings they are both experiencing. Feelings they are both afraid of but are hoping for them to be reciprocated. Saul and Randolph have great chemistry; from the very first time they meet they can’t get the other out their minds. They have both had difficult love lives or none at all, only casual encounters in a world that sees their sexuality as a crime. I love that they are straightforward; they don’t leave things to unnecessary misunderstandings. They say what they have to say, what they hope: they open themselves, exposing vulnerability because what they may have seems worth it.

“I have a sinking feeling, based on no prior experience whatsoever, that I love you.”

Randolph is a wonderful character and I loved him from the beginning. You notice him changing because of Saul, talking more about what he wants and what he feels, being sassy and clever, and fighting for what he treasures. The book has a little bit of an open ending because there’s going to be more than one book, so I hope there’s going to be more of Randolph and Saul in the future.

“My shoulders ache in wet weather. Unfortunately, I live in England.”

I was left happy and wanting more. There’s nothing better than that to confirm how much you enjoyed a book, right?

Title: An Unsuitable Heir (Sins of the Cities #3)Author: K.J. CharlesRelease date: October 3rd 2017Good things about this book: Happy ending.Bad things about this book: The series is over and I’m going to miss the guys.Do I recommend it? Yes, the third and final book didn’t disappoint.Rate: 5/5

You could say I am a K.J. Charles fan and you wouldn’t be wrong. You could say I am a K.J. Charles super fan and you wouldn’t be wrong, not at all. You could say I am a K.J. Charles mega fan and you would see my heart-eyed expression while nodding enthusiastically. I am a fan, that’s 100% right.

What is with K.J. Charles that makes me love everything she writes? Hell if I know, that woman owns my money and me!

This third and last book of this trilogy was the perfect ending to a mystery series with characters that you can’t help but love. Each of them layers and layers of surprises and wonder. The first half of “An Unsuitable Heir” is set at the same time as the second half of the previous book. The events take place simultaneously and you see the story unfolding from a different point of view.

Mark, a man we know because he is friends with Clem and Nathaniel, is the private enquirer asked to find the heir to the Moreton fortune. By the end of “An Unnatural Vice” we know who are the twins, the children of the late Lord Moreton, children he had from his first wife, one of them male so the rightful heir. The twins are the famous Flying Starlings, trapeze artists well known among Londoners.

The real names of the twins are Repentance and Regret. What kind of woman gives those names to their children no matter how much hatred she had for their father? Of course the poor kids went by the names of Pen and Greta, much better alternatives. Greta is a great woman, strong built, she doesn’t left words unsaid, she knows what she wants, and loves her brother with all her heart. She would do anything for him.

Pen is genderfluid; he feels like a man some days and some other days she feels all woman. Pen likes wearing feminine clothes, he has very long hair and loves earrings: his body doesn’t always fit the image he has of who he is inside. Pointless saying how people treat him because of it. Oh, the anger!!! Mark accepts Pen and everything about Pen is precious to him. Mark is new to what Pen is and asks for directions, for explanations, for whatever thing may Pen feel uncomfortable. Mark is sweet and the love blooms almost immediately between them yet it doesn’t feel forced or rushed. It all feels right. They have some issues along the way, with the earldom and all but the story is set to have a happy ending so we must enjoy the journey knowing it will end the best way it can.

The infamous Fogman, the killer that’s been murdering people since book 1 is finally revealed and, surprise surprise, I didn’t see it coming. I should’ve seen it but I’ve been distracted by the romance. The romance was really nice, steamy and adorable; it has their flaws but they all know love is not perfect and they have to fight for it to work.. All the characters are trying to be comfortable in their own skin, with their own sexuality, in a world that does not go easy with people like who doesn’t resemble their idea of normality.

This series is really worth your time: mystery, nobility, murders, and romance. There’s a little bit of everything and it won’t disappoint. I’m glad I got to read the ending of this story a few months before its release. I hope once everyone have read it, the love for this series will spread!

I love all things supernatural and the concept of these books, this story, has me hooked up since the very first book. I love that this is not a romance novel per se and the romance is often put on hold while other things come up in Vic’s everyday life. It’s nice because Victor and Jacob get together almost immediately so you get to see them grow closer, more in love, you see them fight and make up, you see them cook and laugh and be there for each other every single day.

I will miss my Victor when the series will end. I don’t want to think about it, not now. NOT NOW!

There are so many interesting things going on in this book like all the flashbacks of Victor and his former boyfriend in Camp Hell, Stefan. A lot happened when he got out of the mental hospital and I had my confirmation of something I suspected since the last book but didn’t think I was right. Things are going to get really interesting now, and also pretty dangerous with the FPMP being everywhere and with little people Vic can really trust.

“If only I had a practice ghost to exorcise. I could hunt down Tiffany, the dead girl in the alleyway, but it seemed rude to exorcise someone I knew.”

I love Victor and everyone knows it. He scowls, whines all the time, is frail yet brave, and even if he doesn’t want to admit it, he loves Jacob very much. They have some issues at first due to Victor not sharing what’s wrong with him, but then like grown ups they talk about things and make up.

“You’re a wreck, a disaster waiting to happen, and only someone as reckless and arrogant as Marks would chain himself to a sinking ship like you.”

I don’t like when Jacob is used like a comedy relief but of sex. We don’t see much of him and when he’s around Victor the only thing they do is have sex in various very hot ways. I don’t complain, I like a couple with a healthy sex life but they aren’t only that. They talk, they share, they cook together, they take care of each other: they are a couple of adult men who love each other in a very peculiar world.

“Nowadays, the only thing “hardcore” about me was the DVD selection next to my bed.”

Jacob did have his role as the sex relief in the first half of the book but there was also an interesting an unexpected twist that shows he is going to be a very important piece of the puzzle Victor is trying to solve. They did things together that weren’t the kind of things you do naked so, yeah, I think there’s an improvement here and I am so thrilled to go on and discover everything that it’s still a mystery.

Camp Hell was longer than the previous books but, with Victor being his sloppy charming self, it could be a thousand pages and I would still think there wasn’t enough of him. I always want more and it’s going to be really hard to say goodbye. Am I the only one in love with the model that portrays Vic on the covers of the books? He’s the perfect Victor!

Btw, I still see this as the perfect tv series. A much more adult Ghost Whisperer with a hint of sense8 and a little bit of “insert random cop show here”. Netflix, make this happen!

Title: A Destiny of Dragons (Tales From Verania #2)Author: T.J. KluneGood things about this book: Sam, the gang and DRAGONS!Bad things about this book: Not enough Justin. I like the guy.Do I recommend it? Yes, 500%.Rate: 5+++/5☆: It made my “favourite books” list

*A very quote-y review that may contain spoilers of the first book of the series. *

He did it again. Damned you, Mr. Klune, you don’t seem to be able to stop. You’re giving me feelings I didn’t know I needed. Oh my, if I needed them. Some more than others. Maybe I didn’t really need the excruciating fear of very possible loss and heartbreak but I decided to trust you; don’t you dare disappoint an innocent and bright soul like mine, it brings back very bad karma. You’ve been warned.

“You gotta trust me. I know what I’m doing.”
He frowned. “I trust you, Sam. But you never know what you’re doing.”

The more I think about this book, and its predecessor for that matter, the more I love its detailed descriptions, its funny and real characters, and its originality. There are not books like these ones. This series has everything I look for in books: magic, a main character you can’t hate even when he’s clearly being dumb, love in every shape, side characters that bring laughter and sunshine and rainbows, villains that made you fear for everyone’s life or that you simply want to slap real hard, very vague prophecies, and dragons. It has dragons. I love dragons.

Sam has a destiny of dragons and it’s going to be a pain in the butt. I already know I’m going to suffer, that I’m going to have hope that’s going to be crushed by the cruelty of Mr. Klune if he decides to be mean and do something he is not supposed to do. I love my babies, I don’t want harm to come to them. I will do everything in my power, send positive vibes and everything, maybe light some candles, to avoid being heartbroken by the following books of this series.

“Sam is pretty good sometimes at what he does occasionally!”

^^Me, too!

Sam’s grandma, the queen of gypsies, makes a surprise visit to the castle to deliver bad news, prophecies made by constellation dragons, a new cornerstone for him, and ugly vibes. Woman, you don’t mess with Sam and Ryan’s relationship and expect to be loved by the crowd. I don’t like Vadoma; I didn’t like when she first appeared and showed weird visions to Sam, and I didn’t like her by the end of the book with her manipulations and refusal to acknowledge that, for Sam, Ryan is not only a cornerstone but also so much more. I hated how she kept saying she has never told Sam a lie, unlike others: well, of course you have not, you’ve been in his life for how long, one month? Easy for her to say that and it infuriated me so much.

Ruv, the cornerstone Vadoma wants to forcefully pair with Sam, is not a bad guy; he’s being raised knowing he was going to be the other half of Sam, he doesn’t know what to do with himself now that he sees he cannot be that because of Ryan. Sam’s magic reacts to Ruv’s vicinity but what Sam has with Ryan is not something you can replace easily. I didn’t trust Ruv at the beginning, and maybe I never did in the end, but I understand him and what he’s been through, the obligations he feels he needs to follow, the responsibilities that are put upon his shoulders. I don’t blame Ruv, I don’t hate the guy, but you mess with HaveHeart and you have a new enemy in me.

“You’re the most powerful wizard in an age. I’m your cornerstone. Therefore I’m the most powerful cornerstone in an age. It’s my destiny, after all.”

Looking for the dragons to fulfill his destiny will bring Sam and company to face new enemies and new fears. The journey will be long and tortuous, there may be loss, their bodies will be at risk and their souls will waver. Sam, Ryan, Gary, Tiggy, and Kevin have each other and their bond is strong. They won’t give up easily. They have to fight for themselves and for each other. Sam needs to share the weight of his destiny or else he’ll be lost without a back up plan and with no coming back option. Sam, I beg you, open up to Ryan, to the friends you love, it’s the right thing to do.

I wanted to do what was right. I didn’t know how to do that.

The Lightning-Struck Heart was all fluff, sass, puns, a little heartbreak, and so so much love; A Destiny of Dragons is darker, more serious, and nerve-wracking; it still has all the fluff, love and sass the first one had but you won’t feel save. I didn’t. I felt like anything that could go wrong, would go wrong with nefarious results. I was never 100% sure things were going to be okay. The premises kept me from abandoning myself to the romance and comedy of the story, I felt the darkness lurking in the shadows and I didn’t relax. I couldn’t and I won’t until I read the last word of the last book.

We are better together than we ever will be apart. We are bound to each other. And nothing, nothing, will change that.

I love this book, everything about it. It gave me all the feelings, all of them. I love how cheesy Sam and Ryan are, all their kisses, double-entendre, sexy times, jokes, the softness of their love, the strength of their bond, and the absolute certainty that they won’t allow anything bad happen to one another. I want to protect them; they deserve the happiest of endings.

“And he’s blinking and looks all soft and beautiful and then he sees you and he smiles. Like all it takes for him to be the happiest he’s ever been is to see you there. Next to him. That’s… that’s what’s so great about it. That’s what it feels like.”

(Oh, my heart! I want this, Sam, I want what you and Ryan have)

I love Gary and his sassiness and I love how he is all jokes until someone wants to hurt his friends, and then he transforms into a killing machine all glares and murderous glitter! Tiggy speaks so much more allowing us to understand more about him, about the past he doesn’t want to talk about; Tiggy is all business and cuddles and I love him. A prophecy about a destiny involving dragons couldn’t make Kevin more self-centered than he already is. He is hilarious with his Shakespearian speeches and his perverted ways that make everyone feel uncomfortable. Kevin is not the only dragon around but he certainly is one of a kind.

November is the month of my birthday and it’s the month the third book is going to be released. Mr. Klune, damned him, twitted saying to prepare tissues and then the tweet disappeared: does that mean tissues won’t be necessary or that I have to be prepared to lose a part of my soul? I know I won’t be ready (how can I?) but I can’t wait nonetheless.

Recommended to all. How can you not read these books? They’re great and T.J. Klune is an evil genius full of sass. 5+++ out of 5.

“They only know tales and legends, so they can do nothing but shoot in the dark. As if you held a guitar in one hand and strings in another, knowing the two could be put together to make music. But without knowledge, you’d be more likely to break the strings, warp the neck of the guitar, than you would be to play the simplest of songs.”

Title: Cutie and the Beast (Fae Out of Water #1)Author: E.J. RussellGood things about this book: Supernatural being living among us!Bad things about this book: Nothing really worth mentioning, a couple typos maybe.Do I recommend it? Yes, it’s a fun and light read!Rate: 4/5

When it comes to books, the ones I choose easily please me. I’m not very picky. My ratings are always high. It’s not a lie; I simply enjoy almost every book I read. Since the beginning of my Goodreads adventure I have given 2 stars or less to very few books. Those books deceived me because they looked and sounded good, just what I needed and then huge disappointment. I’m usually lucky, though.

I was in the mood for a light read with a happy ending and I was lucky Netgalley approved my request for this book that had a lot of elements that are usually a nice mix resulting in a joyful reading session. Supernatural, urban fantasy, Portland in Oregon (the Grimm’s home; I love him), magic, seelie court, bards, vampires, dragons, werewolves, and all kinds of other shifters and interesting characters.

David loved big men, but he didn’t like bullies, and the good doctor’s body language was all me-Tarzan-you-twink.

The cutie is a young handsome boy who answers to the name of David. He lives with his aunt and her friends and is unlucky when it comes to love and work. Wherever he goes he seems to cause riots and angry mobs. But he needs a job and he gets one as a temp as Dr. Kendrick’s assistant. He is attracted to his voice but then he will be attracted to almost everything else. He will get what he wants; he’s just stubborn like that.

The beast is Alun Kendrick, the Lord of the Sidhe, cursed and exiled from the faerie’s realm. His curse has given him a disfigured face and the soul of a martyr. He glares and scowls and is bitchy with our poor David, the only one who looks him in the eye. He can’t have a human so near his patients, oh excuse me, his clients, since they are all supernatural beings. Benji, the little dragon shifter is adorable and I loved his interactions with David.

“Let’s see—pissy elves, demon hounds, and a tidal wave in a knee-high creek, not to mention swords, magic, and sex.” He flung his arms wide. “Best. First date. Ever.”

I thought this was going to be a cute and steamy retelling of the well known fairy tale with the beauty and the beast starting off badly, then getting to know each other, falling in love and breaking the curse. I was wrong, so wrong; this book was completely something else and I loved every part of it. There are twists, battles, revelations, sweet moments, a couple of steamy episodes as well, faerie ceremonies, flirtatious characters, fun dance moves, and so so much more.

“Ignorance does not equal safety. Ignorance equals ignorance, and that can get you just as dead.”

It has a very nice message, too. A message I can’t tell you (maybe you can get a hint of it from the quote above), so you’ll have to find out by yourself. This was so cute and funny and worth every hour I spent reading it, even as sick as I am right now. Summer cold is annoying but this book made my day a little bit better. I can’t wait to read about the two other faerie brothers; luckily I won’t have to wait much. Now excuse me while I go dancing with zero rhythm or coordination like dear David. Y-M-C-A!!!!

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